Eat Food, Save Money: DIY Maple Almond Granola

The first post I did on eating food and saving money was about making your oatmeal from the big can rather than buying the individual packets.

For you granola fans out there, you should consider doing the same thing. If you shop in the economical bulk section, you can buy several cups of oats and nuts at once, which is pretty much all you need for making granola. If you make it yourself, you can make a lot more than you could buy in a box in the cereal aisle, which means you'll save money in the long run. Also, you can make whatever flavor combination you want.

Notes: Granola is more of a method than a specific recipe. I wrote this recipe with the stuff I used, but you can use what you want. Essentially, it's 2-to-1 oats to nuts (or seeds) ratio, sweetener, some oil to keep it from sticking, and whatever spices you like.

You can add some dried fruit after it's done if you like. Keep it in an airtight container on the counter or in the fridge. It'll keep a little longer in the fridge.

Ingredients:
4 cups of rolled oats (you can use any type of similar grain)
2 cups of raw sliced almonds
1/2 cup of maple syrup
1/2 cup of olive oil
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions: Heat the over to 300.

Add the oats, nuts, spices, and salt to a bowl and stir to combine. Add in syrup, vanilla, and oil to the bowl and stir.

Pour the oats onto a greased or foil-lined baking sheet and spread out in one layer. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so, until the granola is fragrant and darker in color.

Allow it to cool on the baking sheet. If you want clusters, let it cool completely and then break it up into the size pieces you want. If you like flakier granola, stir it a few times while it's cooling to keep it from clumping.

You can eat it like cereal with milk or you can serve it on top of some yogurt. Eat food, save money, and enjoy!